Description of Works
FM Conway’s end-to-end capability in asphalt delivery proved itself during the resurfacing of a key section of the M2 motorway in Kent.
Working with Highways England’s asset support contractor A-one+, the dual two-lane carriageway between junctions 5 and 6 near Sittingbourne was resurfaced in both directions. All materials were supplied from FM Conway’s asphalt plant in Erith and delivered using the companies own haulage fleet.
In July 2019, Highways England made the decision to close a 19km section of the M2 in North Kent for an entire weekend to allow planned maintenance to be carried out.
Although unusual in nature, the 22-hour closure gave FM Conway the time required to resurface both the eastbound and westbound carriageways.
FM Conway Surfacing Director, Paul Padfield, said:
“What we achieved in 22 hours would probably have taken five nights of individual overnight closures. A full weekend closure definitely gives efficiencies from an operational point of view.”
On both carriageways the teams were required to plane out the existing road to a depth of 50mm and replace it with a new 50mm asphalt surface course. In some sections a further 50mm was required to be taken out and replaced with 50mm of new binder course before being topped with the new thin surfacing.
In total the amount of material used on the project equated to 450t of binder course and 2,250t of surface course. This worked out as an area of 5,575m2 of both binder course and surface course, with an additional 19,660m2 of surface course only.
FM Conway’s Aggregates and Asphalt Distribution Manager, Aiden Rhodes, said:
“This was a big undertaking due to the sheer volume of tonnage in and out, and the volume of vehicles needed. It involved co-ordinating vehicles from all our asphalt plants. The Aggregates and Asphalt division had to organise the delivery and replenishment of over 4,000t of materials for the M2 alone – as well as other material requirements to the rest of the business.”
The company carried out all the planing and surfacing with its own equipment and operatives, but also supplied all the material from its asphalt plant in Erith, and delivered it using the company’s haulage fleet.
The recovered planings were also taken to the one of FM Conway’s aggregate depots for recycling, with up to 66 lorries taking materials in and out of the site during the weekend closure.
Surfacing Director at FM Conway - Paul PadfieldWhat we achieved in 22 hours would probably have taken five nights of individual overnight closures.
The main challenge FM Conway was presented on this project was ensuring that the logistics were well planned due to the number of vehicles needed on site during the 22-hour closure.
Despite the chance to show off the company’s service capabilities, everything needed to run according to plan to ensure the works were completed within the closure period of the 12-15 July.
Commenting on the operational benefits of a full weekend closure, Paul added: “Continual working also means there are fewer day joints, resulting in better ride quality, and there are environmental benefits as a result of more efficient use of resources and reduced material wastage. You are also minimising hazardous activities – such as the installation and removal of traffic management – by a factor of five.”
As the project proved to be a different challenge compared to a standard one-night surfacing job, there were also other issues that needed to be accounted for before work could begin.
Aiden explained: “We had to start the planning process 2-3 days earlier to ensure we had the right number of vehicles and the drivers were all inducted in the site rules and regulations. Distribution and transport staff were on hand to confirm the correct drivers and vehicles were booked in, and the drivers all had the site rules issued to them on the night. We also ensured that extra points of contact were made available over the weekend.”
The full weekend closure started late on the Friday night and FM Conway had finished all the planing by 8am the next morning. The new binder course also went down on the Friday night, and the surfacing team started laying surface course on the Saturday morning. By 8pm that night the resurfacing was finished.
Due to the large number of vehicles required on site, careful management of the haulage was also required to ensure efficiency and also a high-level of health and safety on the project.
Aiden added: “Vehicles were brought in within certain time frames for the asphalt and planing. This enabled us to supply the material quickly and at regular intervals. It also gave us the flexibility to use them again for a second round of planings or asphalt.”
FM Conway successfully delivered a high-quality resurfacing project on the M2, completing the coastbound carriageway in four night-time closures and the London-bound carriageway during the full weekend closure of the motorway over the weekend of 12-15 July.
Utilising the business’ self-delivery services and wide range of resources, a seamless resurfacing project was achieved in an efficient and timely manner within the compressed closure period.
Area 4 Construction Manager at A-one+, Sean Coleman, said:
“Considering we gave you a short window to resource these works only adds to the achievement and reflects what the company is all about.”